Monthly Archives: November 2017

Rev. “Twinkle” Marie Manning, founder of UU Women’s Heart, member of the Unitarian Universalist Society for Community Ministries and UUWomen and Religion leadership team, speaks about the importance of multi-media outreach.

This video was inspired by All Souls Tulsa’s video featuring a member that lives in the UK, found here:

I LOVE THIS! Stories like this are why I use many forms of media and outreach to live into my call.

It is why we created projects like UU Talks and virtual Minerva Potlucks.

It is why so many entrepreneurial ministries are using innovative outreach and service platforms. It is why when I do consulting for groups and congregations, encouraging all to incorporate a media component, at least audio and digital-text copies of sermons and services online, but whenever possible integrate video into their ministries. (my background is television so I aim for the highest quality production possible, but seriously – – if you have an iPhone and a gmail account or Facebook account, you have all the technology you need to expand the reach of your ministry – – it may not be the highest quality, but it is a viable option) People are looking for us. Let’s help them find the kind of salvation we have to offer. Help them find a safe and fulfilling place to call their spiritual home. #UUTalks#UULife#UUWomensHeart#StandingOnTheSideOfLove#UUWR

Pictured above is a photo from 2011 when Rev. Dr. Della Reese-Lett, a Doctoral Degree Graduate Of the University of Sedona, was Honored by a Lifetime Achievement Award (presented by Dr. Paul Leon Masters) for her contributions to the spirituality of the planet – including that of founding her own church: Up Church, and is known for such inspirational roles as in “Touched By An Angel.” She remains ever in our hearts.

When we live Life as a prayer, our actions uphold and support the belief in, and realization of, the inherent worth and dignity of every person even if, and especially when, every person does not do the same for us.

Let our gatherings with family, and in community, be filled with peace and love and thankfulness for the blessings we have. May we always and all ways be blessings to each other. Amen.

“A checkbook is a theological document; it will tell you who and what you worship.”

The quote is by Rev. Billy Graham and it was shared today by the I Am UU project. And I am sharing it here because it is the Truth!

It reminds me of David Foster Wallace’s commencement speech “This is Water” where he speaks about a similar thing when he said, “There is actually no such thing as atheism. There is no such thing as not worshipping. Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship. And an outstanding reason for choosing some sort of God or spiritual-type thing to worship —be it Jesus Christ or Allah, Yahweh, Jehovah, the Wiccan mother-goddess or the Four Noble Truths, or some infrangible/inviolable set of ethical principles—is that pretty much anything else you worship will eat you alive.”

The basic message of the service was that we all worship something. And what we choose to worship can help us make sense out of life, even when life seems senseless. What we choose to worship can comfort us, bring us joy, and have us greeting each morning in gratitude. Or, what we choose to worship can perpetuate our suffering. We get to choose to whom we belong, which ‘god’ we will serve. The first step toward doing so is to understand the distinctions of conscious and unconscious worshipping. And, to circle back to the original post: our checkbooks provide a consistent record for us to refer to when in doubt.

And, this month, as we are deep in the spirit of gratitude, please consider supporting Thomas A Earthman’s I Am UU Faithify campaign. In doing so you will be supporting the continued creation of meaningful messages that promote our UU values and principles.

The spaces we are called to create together, whether in community or in our intimate relationships, need to be so safe and so sacred that they can hold all our fears along with all our joys. Here, our broken hearts are mended as they are loyally treated as sacrosanct. This is where our allegiance abides, knowing the road to peace is the way of peace and the path to prayer is the path of prayer. We covenant with each other and with God as we merge our hearts with our callings, loving our families and our neighbors as ourselves.

I am so grateful that our beautiful trees that came down will be repurposed into new life as furniture and art ❤️❤️❤️ Thank youCarrie, Mark, Michael and Annie cannot wait to see the art you create and thanks to Andrea and Katie for protecting our trees from the dark forces = the would-be wood chippers 😎🙏🏼